Dawn
by illuminatingthesoul
Summary: A young girl has been kidnapped and the cops of fifteen are on high alert. Will their acute awareness of their shortcomings devour Sam and Andy whole?
1. In an Instant

For first time readers:

All of my fics are interconnected. I think I've got a few more stories like this before I start over in their relationships and shake things up a bit.

While I recommend just reading my other fics to get the whole picture, I doubt you'll all want to. So, after four storylines, here's where we are:

Andy and Sam are together after a tragic suicide drives them into each others arms. (See: At A Loss). But Sam goes back undercover, and asks Andy to marry him. (See: Life Raft).

Chris and Gail are having a baby girl, Abby, she's five months along. (See: Uncertainty).

Dov killed a man to save Sam's life while Andy was staying with him, and started drinking to cope. Then, he met a girl. She went missing, now she's back, but she won't tell anyone what happened. (See: Changing My Ways).

BEGIN!

(I don't own RB.)

* * *

In an Instant

The water looked deep and inviting as the soon to be Mrs. Swarek walked along Toronto's Sugar Beach, gazing out over the water. Her hair was French braided; a blue scarf lay around her neck and tucked into her grey winter jacket that was zipped up three quarters of the way.

She took a sip of her steaming peppermint hot chocolate and smiled. She really did love this time of year. And who she got to spend it with made it that much more special.

"McNally!" Sam called from behind her. She turned her head, her lips still tugged into a smile. _Click! _Sam pulled the camera away from his face to look at the LCD screen on the back. "Oh my God." He whispered, smiling to himself.

"I thought I said no pictures of me!" She called back to him, small wisps of her hair falling around her face. "Sam!" His eyes remained fixed on the screen, a smile playing on his lips. "Sam?" His head snapped up.

"Sorry, sorry." He laughed, jogging up to her. He slid one arm around her waist and kissed her ear.

"Let me see it." She held her hand out.

"No!" He held the camera away from her, laughing.

"Why?" She whined as she reached for it.

"Because this camera is my baby. And you're going to delete the picture." He pushed her hand away.

"Please?" She stepped in front of him and ran her free gloved hand over his jaw before pulling him in for a quick kiss.

"Well when you put it that way…" He handed her the camera.

"Hold?" She passed him her hot chocolate and clicked her way to the photos. Her gloves didn't make it easy, but eventually she found it. "This is gross!" She shrieked. He grabbed the camera back from her and laughed.

"You're insane! It's beautiful. I love it. I want it framed." He announced.

"Delete! Delete!" She wrestled with him for the camera.

"Never!" He laughed as he swung the camera behind him, thankful for its neck strap and wrapped his arms around her. "I want it out, framed at our wedding."

"It's ugly!" She squealed, her eyes wide. "You wouldn't."

"It's stunning. Totally beautiful. _Painfully_ beautiful." He nuzzled his nose against hers, an intimate move that still gave her chills.

"You're lucky you're so damn good looking." She let herself relax into his arms. "Too bad we have to get back to work."

Sam groaned and handed her hot chocolate. "I don't wanna!" He whined.

"Me either." She scrunched up her nose. "Oh well. We gotta be strong, baby. Just wait until later." She drew out the last few words. His dimples made an appearance and his brown eyes bore into hers.

"'Later', is what gets me out of bed in the morning." He poked her in the side. "I'm driving." He grinned as he turned away from her and began to jog away.

"Sam Swarek!" She called after him, before she picked up her feet and caught up with him.

To a stranger, they looked happy; truly happy. They looked like a young couple, madly in love. They looked like they didn't have a care in the world. And for the time being, they didn't.

But time, like life, is fleeting.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen." Sgt. Best's voice filled the parade room. "You're probably wondering why I called you back from the streets." Nods and murmurs from around the room proved his theory right. "I'm sure you've all heard about the missing girl, Dawn Fletcher."

"I thought 52 was dealing with that." Oliver called from the back of the room.

"And they are, Officer Shaw, if you'd let me finish." Best was obviously stretched pretty thin. Oliver raised his hands in surrender and nodded. "As I was saying, we're four days in now. As we all know, the chances of finding a child alive after 24 hours are – "

Everyone nodded, not needing the image imprinted into their minds.

"Yeah. Well, 52 had started preparing the parents for the worst. Until this morning, when they got a peculiar message left on the tip line." He walked to the table that Andy, Traci, Chris and Gail were sitting at and pressed the play button on a black tape recorder.

"Hi, uh, my name is – no, never mind." A raspy voice whispered. Andy furrowed her brow and tried to get all the information she could from the tape. "That girl, Dawn, we have her. She's okay, she's scared. They're going to call and demand two million dollars, but don't bring it." Around the room, ears perked up and people craned their necks, as if getting closer to the speaker could help find the girl faster.

Andy pressed a knuckle to her lips as she thought. '_Definitely male, sounds Caucasian. I'm going to say, late teens to very early thirties. Damn, that's not good enough.' _She huffed when she realized that she wasn't going to figure out anything new or helpful from the tape.

"Even if you bring it, they're going to kill her. I'm sorry, I really am. I never wanted any part of it, at all. I swear." The voice grew frantic. "Just please. Trace this call, do something. I don't know where we are. I think we're near Spadina, but I can't tell. Just please, – " The breath on the recorder caught.

"What are you doing?" A man yelled, then the line went dead. The officers of fifteen stared forward, a mixture of disgust and terror pasted on their faces and all painfully aware of their shortcomings.

"As you can see, coppers, someone in on this kidnapping wants out. Supposedly, that's our in." He stepped back. "Jerry?"

Detective Barber walked to the front of the room, looking especially haggard. He tossed a folder of papers down on Andy's table and turned to face the room. Holding up an eight by ten photo of the seven year old girl, he exhaled and clenched his jaw.

"Dawn Fletcher was taken from her school parking lot in a targeted kidnapping. We have two suspects, though the Ds at 52 believe that there is at least four. These men," He held up two more pictures. "Are named William Moore, 24 and Cory Watson, 23. We got them on a surveillance camera driving in the same van identified as the one at the scene of the abduction."

"What did they get on them?" Sam called from the back of the room.

"Combined, they've got a long list, but it's all petty stuff; theft under a thousand, indecent exposure, disorderly conduct, the usual." He shrugged his shoulders.

"So what, they just want some extra man power? Because that tape doesn't give us anything about location or who we're looking for." Noelle spoke up.

"True, that tape doesn't, but this one does." Jerry fast forwarded the tape, and pressed play again. The Officers again leaned forward to listen.

"Bring two million dollars to Queen's Park for eight PM. Only you, Mrs. Fletcher. Anyone else comes, the girl dies. You're late, the girl dies. You come up short, you can guess what happens. No exceptions." And the call ended.

"We got more from _that_?" Someone chirped from the back of the room.

"Yes, thanks. We did." Jerry snapped. "Queen's Park. Through some equations and other crazy things that our techs came up with, they narrowed the area that we should be focusing on. Add that to the ambient background noise known as waves crashing on the beach, and that gives us Lower Spadina at high noon." An exchange of astounded looks made Jerry smile. "Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we are that great." He clapped is hands together, once.

"So what do we do?" Traci tilted her head to the side.

"You, my day shift coppers of fifteen, are going to canvas. Everyone, everywhere. In the Lower Spadina area, at least. Night shift, bless their devoted hearts, will be taking calls while you guys check everything out. Anything and everything gets reported to dispatch, got it? No stone unturned, blah blah blah. You get it. So roll out, if we get anything else you'll be notified. Roll out, kids." Jerry dismissed them with the wave of a hand.

The parade room emptied and all of the officers were supplied with a photo of seven year old Dawn before they disbanded and began their search.

"Jesus." Sam said as he and Andy got situated in the car. "Un-freakin'-believable. She's seven years old, and she's been held captive for four days. This, is, – " He replaced the photo and threw the car into gear. "It just makes me angry."

"Hey." She said softly, placing her hand on his forearm. "We'll find her. And when we do, the guys that took her are going away for a long, long time." She smiled at him and narrowed her eyes a little, making sure to catch his attention. "You know I'm right."

"I love you." He smiled at her optimism, or naivety. He'd seen too many of these cases, and only a handful had ended up not haunting him for the months, sometimes years that followed.

"Love you too." She smiled as he hung a left onto the Gardiner Expressway. Andy looked up at the sky through the window of the car just in time to see one of the first snowflakes of the year make its descent. "Sam! It's snowing!" She squealed.

He only grimaced.

"What? Don't you love snow? It's almost Christmas!" She patted him on the arm.

"I love it because you love it. But right about now, I'm pretty sure Dawn doesn't love it. She wants to be at home, with mom and dad." He sighed.

"These kidnappings hit you hard, hey?" She rubbed his shoulder a little. "I know it really gets everyone, but you seem to take it all very personally."

"Just, their kids. Their innocence and childhood is taken away from them in an instant." He shook his head and clenched his jaw. "Who knows what they're doing to her." He whispered.

"We'll find her." She held his free hand, smiling at how he relaxed under her touch.

"Fingers crossed." He said as the radio crackled to life, muttering the words that no one ever wanted to hear.


	2. No Honor Among Kidnappers

"Guilt is perhaps the most painful companion of death."

The going gets a bit tough in here. Those with weak stomachs probably should stay away from this one and the next one.

* * *

"Everyone, clear the waves. Stand by for information regarding Dawn Fletcher." The dispatcher called through. Sam held up a hand and signalled for Andy to stay quiet and listen. "Unit 1517 discovered a Caucasian male in the water just off Queens. He's been identified as twenty three year old Cory Watson. Further details to follow, 10 – 23."

"Damnit." Sam said as he threw open the door and began the search he'd been assigned, albeit miserable and full of contempt.

"Sam!" Andy called after him as he walked up to the front doors of the first apartment building they'd have to search. "Sam, stop!" He kept walking and reached for the door handle. "Swarek!" She yelled. He stopped moving and slowly turned around.

"Sorry." He sighed.

"What are you so bent out of shape about all of a sudden?" She brushed a stray snowflake out of his hair and ran her hand down to his shoulder.

"They killed one of their own, Andy. That means the whole group is devolving. I give Dawn another eight hours, if that." He seethed.

"Hey. Stop it." Andy said, touching his jaw.

"Stop what?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Clenching your jaw like that. You're too tense." She tapped the side of his face lightly.

"Can you blame me?" He lowered his eyes to the ground.

"Look at me." She began her regular pep talk. Reluctantly, he did as he was told. "We're going to find her." She whispered, meaning every word. He began to shake his head but she stopped him with a swat to the chest. "Do you know why?" Her eyes held the defiant fire that they often did when challenged. "Because I said so." She stepped back before brushing past him and leading the way into the building.

"Works for me." He smiled and followed her in.

His smile disappeared as the two entered the elevator and Andy went to press one of the forty eight buttons, each assigned a floor.

"We have to check _every _apartment?" She held her extended index finger suspended before the first floor button. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Toronto's finest, baby. This is what we do." He was not impressed.

"I'm glad we had a good breakfast." She muttered before pressing the button and stepping back as the door closed.

Seventeen floors in, thirty one left. Sam sighed as he knocked on the next door. Footsteps could be heard from the hallway before a woman opened the door.

"Officer?" The woman asked.

"Good afternoon, ma'am. Have you seen this girl?" He held up a photo of Dawn. The woman squinted at the photo and bit her lip; much like Andy did when she was thinking hard about something. Unconsciously, he looked down the hallway towards her. She was deep in conversation with a twenty something year old man, completely unaware that he was flirting with her. Sam could tell from where he stood, twenty feet away.

"Actually, she looks familiar." The woman's eyes widened and Sam snapped back to the present conversation.

"Really? Where did you see her? Her name is Dawn, we really need to find her." This was the first bite they'd had all day.

"Oh, never mind. I just recognize her from the news." She looked at the ground, embarrassed. He sighed heavily, but thanked her anyways and wished her well before walking towards Andy, who was still heavily engaged in conversation.

"I know! It's so sad, isn't it? How could someone do that?" The man shook his head with mock sincerity. "Well, Officer, if you aren't doing anything this evening, maybe I could help you look for her?"

"While I admire your willingness to lend yourself to this investigation, I believe she has a fiancé." Sam smiled arrogantly as he slid his arm around her waist possessively.

"Oh, sorry man. Didn't know." The man raised his hands in defence. "Look, I do hope you find her. I hope she doesn't end up like that guy they strangled."

"Thanks for your time." Andy muttered as he stepped back into his apartment and the two continued on. "That was a bit much, don't you think?" She asked him as they moved back towards the elevator.

"Well sorry, I just don't like it when other guys try to get in my girls pants." He pressed the button and the doors opened almost immediately. A mischievous smile spread across his face and he snaked his arms around her and pulled her into the elevator. "Maybe we could take another break?" He pulled her in close, and touched his nose to hers.

"Later." She furrowed her brow. "We have to find this girl."

"Andy, she's not here. You and I aren't going to find her. Maybe someone else will, maybe no one will – " He began.

"Excuse me?" She pressed her palms to his chest to create space between them.

"Andy. It's been four days. We don't know if she's alive now, as it is." He pulled her close again. "I'm just trying to prepare you for the worst case scenario.

"Have faith." She whispered as the elevator doors opened and again, she led the way into the hallway and began to knock on doors.

"Rook." He sighed and fell into step with her. While he admired her for never losing hope, he knew all too well that when the stacked odds prevailed, and Dawn wasn't returned to her parents, Andy would be left a crumpled heap of self loathing and disappointment.

"Good afternoon, ma'am. My name is Officer McNally and I was wondering if you could tell me if you've seen this girl?" Andy held up Dawn's photo. Sam was about to interject when his cell phone rang. He excused himself and took a few steps down the hallway.

"Swarek." He snapped.

"Sam, it's me. Time to bring it back." Jerry sounded exhausted.

"Why? What happened?" He tried to keep his voice low.

"Just, come back in here. Now." He hung up. Damnit. Sam knew that voice.

"Andy, we've got to go, _now._" He ran back to his partner.

"What happened?" She near shrieked.

"Ma'am, thank you for your time." Sam said to the woman as he pulled Andy back to the elevator.

"Sam! What is happening?" She yanked her arm away from him.

"I don't know, Andy! I don't know. We just have to get back to the station." He said as the elevator finally touched ground level and they sprinted out to the car.

The ride to the station flew by as Sam used his tactical driving skills to their fullest.

"Jerry! What's going on?" Sam called as they entered to see Jerry with his hands on the edge of a desk, leaning over with his eyes shut tightly. After catching a better glimpse of the station as a whole, he knew something was wrong. "Hold on." He told Andy to stay where she was. Jogging into the locker room, he was greeted by the stench of vomit. Officers were draped left and right over the benches, some with tears in their eyes. "She's dead." He said quietly.

Another officer stood. "No. She is definitely not dead." Another dry heave could be heard from the showers as another officer gave up his lunch.

He ran back into the bullpen and grabbed Andy.

"Babe, I have no idea what is going on. But the male officers are puking their guts out, and she's alive. I don't know what that means." He said, his hands on both of her arms.

"Sam." Jerry mustered up the strength to call him over.

"What happened?" Sam asked, walking towards him with Andy in tow.

"Tack room." He whispered. "She should stay outside." He looked at Andy.

Sam nodded solemnly and patted Jerry on the back before leading the way to the tack room, passing many distraught officers.

"Wait here, babe." He turned to her outside the door. She craned her neck to see over his shoulder, trying to figure out what had turned fifteen upside down. "I'll be right back." He took a deep breath and turned into the room, where two EMT's stood around a blue and white cooler.

"Look, we've gotta move now." One said to the other.

"Hold on." Frank, who was leaning against the back wall murmured. "Swarek."

Cautiously, Sam stepped towards the table and leaned forward. Almost instantly, he staggered backwards and struggled to catch his breath.

"Sam? Sam!" Andy began to step into the room but he turned and walked her back out. "Sam?" She whispered, her eyes wide with horror.

He didn't speak. Instead, he closed his eyes and slowly folded his arms around her and buried his face in her neck, trying to get his breathing under control. He knew that the only thing capable of calming him at that moment was her touch.

"What is it?" She whispered as her arms found their way around his back and she began rubbing soothing patterns along his muscular shoulders. After a few minutes of silent embrace, in no hurry he pulled away from her. His eyes were open, but seemingly empty. She ran her soft fingers over his cheekbone, making his eyelids flutter. "Sam, what was it?" She asked again.

"Her fingers." His eyes widened in sheer terror, and the colour drained from his face. "It was her fingers."


	3. Little Fingers

Second last! Before I begin, I want to say YOU ALL NEED TO READ THIS: **Death by .x. imagine .x.** AND **Just Part of The Job by Quixotically**. They are sooo good, it's ridiculous. Thanks for all of your reviews!

* * *

Little Fingers

At first, she thought she'd hear him wrong.

"What?" She whispered. She'd never seen him this way, so disgusted and angry but too scared to do anything about it. He held up his index, middle and ring fingers and counted them off.

"One, two, three. In that cooler." He said before he walked as calmly as he could to the locker room and got sick. Andy poked her head inside the room.

"Her fingers?" She asked quietly.

"Officer McNally." Best shook his head, a silent warning which she heeded. "Go on." He said to the paramedics, who packed everything up and left quickly.

"If they find her, maybe we'll be able to save them." Andy heard one say to the other. Frank ran a heavy hand over his face and sighed.

"I warned you, Andy. Not every case ends up like Rebecca." He said, his eyes not leaving the ground. "In fact, very few of them do."

"What happened?" She'd been asking that a lot today.

"Call came in a half hour before they wanted the money. Something along the lines of, 'take good care of my buddy.' Then, the bastard threw in 'as a token of our appreciation, here's something to keep mommy hopeful.'" Frank's fists clenched and unclenched at his sides. "Found the cooler ten minutes later, outside the station. They were here, and we missed them." He shook his head and a look of disgust spread over his face.

"This is horrible." She took a seat at the round table off to the side of the room. "I want to go see how Sam is, but I'm scared to go in there. He said everyone was throwing up." She reasoned.

"You're lucky you didn't have to see that, Andy." He got up from his position on the wall. "I've been here for a long time. I've seen bodies, body parts, brain matter, blood, guts; the works. It's a part of the job; it's what we sign up for." He crossed his arms. "But little fingers are enough to do me in. Enough to do everyone in." He began walking out of the room. "Her little fingers." He whispered to himself.

Shaking her head, she got up from the table and hesitantly entered the men's locker room.

"Swarek?" She asked an officer quietly about Sam's whereabouts. The man simply pointed to the restrooms in the back. Slowly, she walked around the corner to find Sam leaning over the sink, splashing water over his face. He rubbed his eyes furiously and cracked his knuckles. "Hey." She whispered from the doorway.

"Hey, you." He looked at her through the mirror in front of him.

"You okay?" She asked as he turned around, stepping towards him. He thought about it for a minute, before nodding and smiling a pitiful smile. "You sure?"

"Yep." His voice was high pitched. "One second." He took a step towards the bathroom stall and threw up again. She carefully slid into the stall with him and sat down next to the toilet that her fiancé was hunched over.

"Try again?" She asked, placing her palm on his cheek and running her thumb over his eyebrow. He nodded. "You okay?" He shook his head.

"I will be, just give me a sec. You don't get used to little fingers." He breathed, trying to keep from being sick again.

"This reminds me of that one morning after we stayed at the Penny until close. Except, I was the one puking." She tried to lighten the mood, but from the hazy look in his eyes, she knew that her efforts would go to waste. "Can we go home?"

"No." He lifted his head from its resting place on his arm. "We gotta go look some more."

"We can let auxiliary take care of it." She cooed.

"No. We have to look." He began to get up, but he fell back into the stall. "Sorry, I just got up too fast. Come on." He helped Andy up. He began to lead her out but her voice stopped him.

"Hey!" She grabbed his arm. "What did you do?" She asked incredulously, picking up his hand and running her fingers over his bloody knuckles.

"No big deal." He shrugged.

"Sam!" She pulled him over to the sink and began washing off the cuts on his hand. "How did this get here?" She knew the answer.

"I punched the wall." He admitted.

"Wher –" She didn't have to finish asking. She turned to face him and in her peripheral vision she noticed a spot on the wall where the tiles had cracked, and some had fallen from their places. "You!" She touched her finger to his chest. "They're going to start making you pay for the damages around here."

"That? That wasn't me." He looked over his shoulder. "That was your little buddy Chris." He raised an eyebrow. "That," he said, pointing over her shoulder "Was me." She turned to face another crack in the tiles.

"You guys are strong." She said wide eyes, shaking her head. She dried off his hand and he walked her out, passing a white faced, bloody fisted Chris.

They'd already begun walking out to the car when Jerry stopped them.

"You're going back out there?" He near yelled. Sam sighed but stopped in his tracks before turning to face his friend, who was stomping angrily towards them.

"Yes, Jerry. We are." He did his best to be soothing; but when Jerry was stressed like this, nothing could calm him down.

"But, but, but – " He began to ramble. He didn't actually have a reason to want Sam to stay other than the fact that he needed the support. With Luke gone, he was a main player in a lot of operations such as this, and it was wearing him down.

"How would you feel if those were Leo's fingers?" He stepped towards the other man. "We're going back out there." Jerry sighed and shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"Fine." He clenched his jaw. "Just be careful. The press is already having a God damn field day with this, and they don't even know about Watson." He turned and walked away.

Sam grabbed Andy's hand and began to walk her to the car, but she didn't budge. She was chewing on her lip, her eyebrows knit together. The wheels were definitely spinning.

"What is it?" He asked her, trying to look into her eyes. A look of realization fell over her and her mouth slowly opened, her eyes did the same.

"Jerry!" She screamed, running back to the building. She caught him just outside the door. "Watson. The press doesn't know about him?" Sam ran up behind her.

"No, we haven't released the information yet. We don't want to panic the family." He spoke as if this were run of the mill information.

"Sam." She looked at him like a deer in the head lights. Slowly, he caught on and his face took on the same characteristics.

"Oh my God." He whispered.

"What the hell is going on?" Jerry snapped.

"What was C.O.D. on Watson?" Sam placed a heavy hand on Jerry's shoulder.

"Strangulation, why?" He didn't understand.

"Holy shit!" Andy took off towards the car.

"Get cars, an ambulance and ETF on us." Sam yelled as he followed Andy.

"What the hell?" Jerry shook his head, but did as he was told.

This time, Andy made it to the car first and jumped behind the wheel. No sooner had Sam closed the car door before she gunned it and sped out of the parking lot.

"This could be him." She said as she took two intersections in less than twenty seconds. "We might find her!" She whispered. Sam placed a hand on her tense shoulder while steadying himself with the other. She could drive.

"Babe, we might. You have to be ready in case we don't find her. Or we might find her, but she might not be alive." He spoke softly. "I've seen it before. You're going to want that booze."

"Never." She whispered as they pulled up in front of the apartments and jumped out, not waiting for Sam. She ran to the front of the building and pushed the door, but it didn't open. "What?" She shrieked. "What?"

"Babe." Sam said softly as he pulled the door open.

"Damnit." She shook her head and laughed before proceeding to the elevators. She pressed the button once, then twice, then over and over again. "Open!" She whispered angrily.

"You need to calm down. You're a cop, Andy. You go into this worked up and it will not end well. It never does." He stepped between her and the elevator and looked into her worried brown eyes.

"This time, we stay together." She said as the elevator doors opened and she pushed him backwards into the small space.

The ride up was slow and agonizing. Andy couldn't stop moving, Sam's heart was beating about fifty times harder than it was meant to.

"Come on, come on, come on." She chanted quietly as she paced.

"Relax." Sam said, once. She looked at her feet and stood still.

When they finally did reach the seventeenth floor, Sam stopped her one more time.

"Look at me." She did. "Take down your hair." She did. "You're going to knock, like you did earlier. I'll be beside the door. Get him talking. If he doesn't let us in voluntarily, then we head in, guns drawn." She nodded. "Dawn's in there, we get her no matter what. Shoot him if you have to. We're getting her back."

"Okay." She whispered. He leaned forward and kissed her gently.

"You ready, Panda?" He whispered. She still stood so close that her long eyelashes fluttered against his skin.

"It's always darkest before the Dawn." She smiled. "Pun intended." With that, she turned and knocked on the door three times.

When the man answered, he had a large cut across his face that looked fresh.

"Sir, are you okay?" Andy put on her concerned face.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I gotta go." He closed the door. Looking at Sam, she smiled. "I think kicking a door in is just what we need." She knocked again, but the man didn't return.

Sam took his position beside her.

"One, two, now." They kicked the door off of its hinges. Outside, they could hear the sirens of backup approaching.

"What the hell! Get out of my house!" The man called from the back room. They cleared the front room and kitchen before proceeding to the bedroom. The man was standing on the other side of the bed, his hands shaking and eyes wild.

"Where is she?" Andy yelled. "Where is Dawn?"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" The man yelled in an almost sing song way.

"Dawn! We're the police! Make a sound for us, we'll find you!" Sam began yelling overtop of everyone.

"I don't know a Dawn! Get out of my house!" The man screamed, his face growing red.

"Where is she?" Andy screamed.

Through all of the commotion, Sam almost failed to see the chair on the outside patio scoot a little to the left.

"Dawn!" He called out again, and sure enough, the chair jumped. "Andy. Patio." He whispered to her, underneath the man's yelling. She nodded and started to make her way around the bed.

"Stay back, you crazy bitch!" He yelled.

"Watch yourself!" She screamed back, advancing a bit further towards the man. He took a step backwards and both Sam and Andy dropped their guns and screamed as he stepped out onto the balcony and took a seven fingered Dawn into his bloody arms.

"Give me the girl." Sam picked up his gun and walked over to them.

"I don't think so." He retorted. Dawn squirmed against him and squealed, trying to free herself as Andy fought tears. She couldn't look away from her hand. It was crudely wrapped in white gauze and from the looks of it, still bleeding.

"Now!" Sam yelled, louder than Andy had ever heard him. She flinched. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw and whispered. "It's okay baby."

"Look, why don't you tell me your name?" Andy asked softly.

"My name is get out of my house. Now." He snapped.

"I'm serious. You help us, we help you." She took another step forward.

"Stay back!" He yelled, placing one hand underneath Dawn's chin so if he needed to, he could break her neck.

"Let her go!" Sam screamed. Seventeen floors down, sirens and the shouts of fellow officers were filling the air.

An amused look came over the man's face and a smile tugged at his lips.

"Alright." He hooked one leg over the balcony, then the other. Andy watched in horror as he lifted Dawn over the edge with him, holding her with one arm, using the other hand to hold on to the railing. Screams could be heard from below as onlookers watched the obviously disturbed man suspend himself and seven year old Dawn Fletcher seventeen floors above the cement.

"Get back over here." Sam stepped forward, his words more pleading than anything.

"Please." Andy whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. At that point, Dawn broke loose of her gag and began screaming for her parents. Andy's heart didn't break. It didn't shatter. It simply froze. It stopped beating, stopped feeling, stopped everything.

"I want my Mom!" Dawn screamed.

"Dear God." Sam's voice quivered and his eyes too, welled up.

"See you on the other side." The man winked and one by one, he removed his fingers from the rail.

Sam and Andy would never forget the events that followed.


	4. Dogs, Kids and Broken Ribs

Here's the end! I've already got an idea for my next ff, and by popular demand, it's going to be a Dov + Megan. Thank you all for your reviews!

* * *

Dogs, Kids and Broken Ribs

Without thinking for even a second, which Sam would never forgive her for, Andy lunged forward and nearly threw herself over the balcony as well. Before he could react, she was hanging over the railing by her waist, with no leverage whatsoever.

"Hold on, Dawn!" She was screaming. _Thank God. _That meant she had a hold on her. He almost didn't hear her calling his name repeatedly. "Sam! Sam, Sam, Sam!" It was the only word she could manage as she felt herself begin to topple over the railing.

She stared down at the pavement below her, and then at the small girl she had a three finger grip on.

"Dawn, stop moving!" She shrieked. Normally, she would have been kinder, but seventeen stories and imminent death can change a person. Time slowed to a near halt as she felt a heavy hand on the small of her back, and another hooking around her equipment belt.

"I've got you." He said, tapping her other hand which was clinging to the railing. She hesitated. "Andrea, I've got you. Trust me." His voice was smooth, hiding the overwhelming panic well. What if he didn't have her? What if he lost his grip? He'd may as well go over the railing too, if that happened.

Andy whipped her hand off of the railing and let her and Dawn's lives be held in the palm of Sam's hands. "Dawn, I need your other hand." She said, a bit calmer. If she died, then she died. But everything was different with another person involved. Dawn shook her head.

"It hurts too much!" She cried.

"Dawn, I promise I won't hurt it. But I need you to reach up here so I can get a better hold on you." She began to hyperventilate, but relaxed as Sam hooked his leg through the railing to stabilize himself and then slid his hand up to her shoulders and began tracing his trademark patterns.

Reluctantly, Dawn swung up her other hand. There wasn't a lot to hold onto, so Andy grabbed her wrist instead.

"Where'd the man go?" Dawn asked, suddenly calm.

"He's gone, Dawn. He's never coming back. You're safe." Andy gasped for air as she tried to pull Dawn up with no success. It's amazing how dead weight can seem so much heavier. "Dawn, I need you to make your body straight. Like a board." She begged.

"Why?" The young girl tilted her head to the side.

"Trust me," She couldn't believe she was saying this to a seven year old with seven fingers that had been held captive for four days and expecting that she'd listen. "It'll help me pull you up."

"Like this?" Dawn straightened her body as best she could.

"Yes! Good job Dawn, now stay that way." Andy praised her. Sam regretted to admit to himself that his palms were sweaty as hell and he was slowly losing his grip on the girls.

"Come on, Andy." He whispered.

"Sorry, sorry." Andy took one last glance at the ground below her, where she could see who she thought were Dawn's parents, being held back by officers. Nearly a hundred people had gathered, all in all. Lining the streets, the sidewalks, the offices and shop windows surrounding them. "Ready, Dawn?" She whispered.

The little girl nodded and she called to Sam.

"Pull us up." And he tried. With one leg still hooked through the railing, he reached forward as far as he could and circled Andy's arms easily with his big hands. Slowly, he began to pull them back to safety, second guessing his every move. They were almost over when he pulled them up a little too quickly and Andy lost her hold on Dawn's wrist.

"Stop!" She screamed. Her feet were on the ground, and Sam instructed her to do what he did with his leg to steady himself, and she did. He reached over the railing, too far over for his liking and with one heave he pulled Dawn over the railing and collapsed against the apartment building.

By now, news camera's had captured the rescue, and cheers and sobs of joy erupted from the ground below them.

"We're coming down." Andy said into her radio. She sat on the patio next to Sam, who was still holding Dawn. "Oh my God." She allowed herself to exhale for the first time. Sam wrapped his arm around her and pulled her into him as close as he possibly could. He kissed her ear four or five times.

"Yeah." He whispered, looking down at a now sleeping Dawn.

"That was fast." Andy pointed at the girl.

"I know. Well what do you really expect? I doubt she's slept in days." He brushed the girls' bangs out of her face to better survey any injuries.

"We should take her downstairs." She breathed. He nodded in agreement and the two stood, but not before Andy threw up. "My turn." She grimaced. He rubbed her back softly as the two began the trek downstairs.

Andy led the way out of the apartment, Sam following with a sleeping Dawn wrapped possessively in his arms. As they slowly began the trek down to the lobby, reality set in.

"She could have died out there. I could have dropped her." Andy whispered.

"Yeah, and I could have dropped you. But I didn't. And neither did you." He leaned over and kissed her again, which caused Dawn to stir.

"Where's my Mom?" Dawn murmured.

"We're almost there, sweetheart." Sam rubbed her back lightly.

"You're police?" She asked, her head still resting on Sam's chest.

"Yeah, sweetie." Andy answered sweetly.

"I'm going to be a police too." She smiled. "You guys are cool."

The elevator came to a halt and Sam squeezed Andy's hand.

"You ready?" He asked both girls.

"Yeah." Andy nodded.

"Yes!" Dawn smiled.

The doors opened and they walked through the lobby and out to the front of the building. Out of the corner of her eye, Andy recognized the dead form of the man. She didn't think about what had happened to him, so it made sense that he fell and died. _Good. _She thought.

Sam saw him too and covered Dawn's eyes.

"Let's go see Mom and Dad." He put her down on the ground, facing her parents who had broken through the police barrier and were sprinting towards them.

"Mom! Dad!" Dawn shrieked happily. Sam and Andy stepped backwards to give them some room. The crowd erupted in cheers and there wasn't a dry eye for a mile.

Sam looked over to see a few tears spilling over Andy's eyes, which she quickly wiped away. He slid his arm around her waist and whispered in her ear.

"You did that." Chills shot up her spine.

She let herself lean back into him as the heart warming scene unfolded in front of them. Camera's flashed around the family, but then turned to them. Sam felt Andy's body tense against him, and chuckled accordingly.

"We've had this conversation before. You're painfully beautiful. Let the world see." His whole body felt warm as he saw her visibly light up at his comment.

"Officers! Officers!" People began to yell, trying to get comments. Uniforms held them back, giving Andy, Sam, Dawn and her parents a moment. Her father got up and walked over to Sam, extending a hand.

"Thank you so much, Officer … Swarek." He shook his hand furiously, tears still streaming down his face.

"Mr. Fletcher, it was no trouble whatsoever. I'm beyond happy that I could help." Sam smiled gratefully, clapping him on the shoulder.

"And you." The man turned to Andy. "You're a phenomenal human being." He pulled her in for a hug. She steeled herself for the flood gate of emotions that was about to be opened.

"Dawn is such a strong little girl." She said quietly, not trusting her voice to go any louder.

"I know." He smiled and released her, turning around to look at his little girl. "We'll get through this."

At that moment, Dawn and her Mom came over to thank the officers as well.

"These are them." Dawn told her Mom, pointing at Sam and Andy. "I'm going to be like them." She smiled brightly, before letting go of her Mom's hand. She walked over to Sam and hugged him around the waist. Laughing, he bent down and picked her up.

"I think you'll make a great police officer, Dawn." He said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Thank you, kind sir." Dawn kissed him on the cheek, before extending her arms out towards Andy. Smiling and still a little tearful, she took Dawn from Sam.

"You're the very best." She smiled and hugged her. Andy smiled a sad smile, appreciating how strong this girl was, whether she intended it or not.

"Come here, honey. Let's leave the Officers be." Andy handed the girl back to her mother.

"You guys should go with the EMT's, get her to the hospital. They can reattach her fingers, I believe." Sam nodded.

"Thank you." Mrs. Fletcher spoke from the heart, before they turned and walked back towards the barrier. Sam turned to Andy.

"Home?" He asked, and she nodded frantically in response.

"I'm so tired." She whispered, clearly telling the truth.

"Come on, Panda." He smiled, placing his hand on the small of her back and leading her through the screaming crowd of people. They were greeted at the car by Jerry, who threw all of his inhibitions out the window and hugged both of them.

"Having you two around makes me feel like Leo's always gonna be safe." He released them. "You two are heroes." He smiled, and then yawned.

"And what do heroes do at five PM?" Sam asked.

"Sleep!" Andy chirped and Jerry nodded in agreement.

"See you later, brother." Sam shook his friends hand and opened the car door for Andy.

The ride back to the station was silent.

"I'm gonna ask Best for the day off tomorrow. How does that sound?" She asked him once they were comfortable in his truck. "I think we deserve it."

Her questions didn't elicit a response. "Babe?"

It was at this time he snapped back to reality.

"Sorry, yeah. That does sound good." He smiled. Content for the moment, she smiled and stared back out the window, and quickly got lost in her thoughts.

"Do you want me to make some dinner when we get back? I kind of want spaghetti. Or we could order in?" She turned to him again, but for the second time, he didn't answer her. "Pull over." She said.

He shook his head to clear the haze and did as he was told.

"What's up?" He asked her. She took off her seatbelt and moved across the seat, so she was sitting right next to him.

"You okay, hon?" She asked softly.

"Yeah." He smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"Nice try." She laughed. "What's up?"

He shook his head and looked at her for a minute, before taking off his seatbelt and as gently as he could, doing his best to hide the urgency in his actions, he placed both hands on either side of her face and kissed her once.

"I'm so happy to have you." He whispered as his hands moved from her face down her body and around to her back. He tugged her towards him and for once, let her hold him. More than once he'd seen a defenceless little girl being tortured beyond belief, he just needed to know that what just happened had actually happened. That she hadn't lost Dawn over the edge. That he hadn't lost her. That they'd won.

"Everything's okay." She whispered. He was too tired to respond, so he just sighed heavily and rubbed her back with his thumbs. She could feel his heart beating against her breasts as he nestled his head in the crook of her neck.

Her fingers on the back of his neck reminded him of the seven little fingers he'd managed to save, and it sent a shockwave through his entire body. Those little fingers meant more to him than almost anything.

"I love you." He whispered. "More than you'll ever know. More than I'll ever know. It surprises me more and more everyday."

"Why does it surprise you?" She smiled at him.

"Because I didn't think that anyone would ever be able to get under my skin and captivate me like you do. I didn't think that I'd ever let anyone get so close. Didn't think anyone could." He said quietly. Her hands and feet were always cold, and he never really knew why. Until that moment, with his head resting on her neck and shoulder, he realized that that was where all the heat was. She was like a furnace, and it was just what he needed. "You're warm."

"I know. My chest is always super hot. Don't know why." She rolled her eyes and laughed. "I love you too. More than you think is possible." He sat up and took her hands in his.

"How do you feel about having kids?" His question visibly shocked her. "I mean, later on. When we're married. Or now. Whenever you want?" He rambled.

"I'd never even thought about it." She admitted. "You want kids?"

"I think so." He nodded. "It's their little hands and feet that get me." He smiled.

"Wow." She breathed, smiling.

"What?" He narrowed his eyes a little.

"It feels like yesterday that I was fresh out of high school, bar hopping and partying like there as was no fricken tomorrow. Now I'm talking about having kids." She whispered.

"Well? What do you think?" He asked, holding his breath.

"I think," she began, "that I could get used to the idea." She smiled. "In time. I don't think I'm maternal enough right now." She placed her palm on his cheek. "Are you okay with that?"

"As long as you're still with me, I'm fine with anything." He smiled sheepishly. "I'm so whipped." The two erupted in laughter.

"We're getting married in less than a year." She laughed quietly and kissed him. "I'm so excited!"

He lifted her onto his lap and threaded his fingers through her hair as he kissed her. "Me too."

"I didn't think men got excited about weddings." She laughed as he rubbed his nose against hers and she cupped his face in her hands.

"Are you kidding? I get to say you're mine forever and ever. Why would that not be exciting." He laughed with her.

"I love you so much it's stupid." She flopped off of his lap and onto the seat next to him. "Let's go home."

"Good idea." He smiled and restarted the truck.

"You sure you're okay with waiting?" She asked. "For kids?"

"Honestly, I do want kids. It doesn't have to be tomorrow, or next week, or next year. But I do want them. I want them with you." He said as they pulled up in front of their house.

"So, whose gonna be your best man?" She asked before they got out of the truck. "Jerry, probably. Ollie." He replied. "Whose gonna be your Maid of Honour?"

"Traci. Gail's a bridesmaid. I feel bad though." She bit her lip.

"Why?"

"What about Dov and Chris? I think they're going to be bridesmaids too." She grinned. "No! Flower girls!" She clapped her hands. "Perfect." She whispered mischievously.

"How about, I take Jerry, Ollie, Chris and Dov, and you take all of their… significant others?" Sam smiled.

"Why didn't I think of that?" She tilted her head to the side abruptly. "But yeah, that's probably better than Dov in a dress." She giggled and leaned into his side. "Carry me?"

"With pleasure." He chuckled as he picked her up and closed the door with his hip.

Once safely inside, they decided on left over pizza and movies.

"Sorry that I'm not really delivering tonight." Andy said as she dragged her feet over to the couch where Sam was already sitting.

"Hmm?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Remember? _Later_?" She smiled goofily.

"Oh yeah. Oh well, there's plenty of time for that. Let's just get comfortable here for now." He said, standing up and sliding off his shirt. She put the pizza box she was holding down onto the table and raised her arms above her head.

"Me too?" She asked, yawning. He shook his head and laughed before pulling off her shirt as well, and jumping back at the sight of her skin.

"God! Andy!" He pointed at her stomach. "I think you might have cracked a rib, here!" There was purple bruising all over her ribs where she'd thrown herself over the rail.

"I'm fine. Whatever." She waved his concern away.

"Jesus." He shook his head. "You're getting checked out tomorrow." He ran his hands over her breasts and the lace bra supporting them and down to her hips.

"Couch." She pushed him backwards onto the couch and then made herself comfortable on top of him. "You're warm too." She said, closing her eyes and wiggling herself into a comfortable position.

He lifted her hand up and pressed his palm against hers, smiling.

"You have such tiny hands." He chuckled, closing his fingers over hers. "Do you think Dawn will be okay?"

"I think she will. Did you see how much her parents love her? They won't let anything go wrong." Andy responded, her hot breath caressing his bare chest.

"Can we get a dog?" He chirped randomly.

"I asked you that once, and you said no." She lifted her head and looked at him.

"That was before I realized I wanted kids with you." He pointed out, running his hand over the exposed part of her stomach.

"Well," she laughed, "I for one would love to get a puppy!" She squealed, sitting up on him. "We'll go looking tomorrow."

"Sounds great." He smiled, pulling her back down onto him. "Sleep time." He rubbed his hands over her shoulders and closed his eyes.

To a stranger, they looked like two cautious individuals. They looked like two people with reservations, and fears, and uncertainties. They looked like people that threw themselves over balconies to save people they didn't know. Did that make them irrational? Maybe. Did that make them crazy? It's quite possible. But for the time being, they were just a young couple, madly in love, with nothing to regret and everything to look forward to.


End file.
